Manchester, N.H. (February 27) -- Led by a 22-point effort from senior Branimir Zeko (Mississauga, Ontario), the Saint Anselm men's basketball team advanced to the Northeast-10 Tournament Quarterfinals with a 67-53 win over 12th-seeded Pace University on Saturday afternoon. The Hawks advance to face fourth-seeded Le Moyne on Monday night in Syracuse.

With 11:56 left in the first half, Saint Anselm senior guard Greg Vetrano (Andover, Mass.) became the 44th player in school history to reach the 1,000-point mark. Vetrano pulled in the rebound off a Zeko block and pulled up for a jumper to hit the 1000-point plateau. He entered the game just two points shy of the mark. Just prior to Vetrano's record-setting score, Pace senior Laurence McGhee knocked down a free throw to notch his 1000th after entering the game just one shy of the mark.

Saint Anselm jumped out to a quick 11-1 lead in the opening minutes and held a 19-11 advantage with 6:35 left in the first half. From that point, the Hawks closed the half on a 12-2 run and turned the game into a 31-13 score at the halftime break.

In the second half, the Hawks quickly pushed the lead over the 20-point mark and with 8:47 left, held a 56-35 lead. However, Pace began to find some offense over the next 4:43 and after an 11-3 scoring run, the Setters closed to within 12 at 58-46 with 4:04 left. That was as close as the visitors would get though as the Hawks wrapped up their 19th victory of the season.

Zeko led the Hawks with a season-high 22-point effort and has now scored in double figures in three straight games. Sophomore Jack Keough (Owego, N.Y.) was the leading rebounder for the Hawks with 10 boards to go with eight points. Junior Thomas Baudinet (Watertown, Conn.) finished with nine points and now has 1,286 career points, moving into 18th on the Saint Anselm all-time scoring. Erik Harris led the Setters with an 11-point, 10-rebound double-double, along with a 12-point effort off the bench by Justin Alston.

With the win, the Hawks now sit at 19-9 overall, while Pace ends its season on a five-game losing streak and a 10-18 overall record. Saint Anselm hits the road on Monday night to face Le Moyne at Ted Grant Court in Syracuse. That game will tip off at 7 p.m. and will be available online at www.lemoynedolphins.com.